We have been working with and on behalf of older South Asian persons and their carers since 1990 under a contract to Manchester Children, Families and Social Care (Manchester Social Services). Our work is regularly monitored by an officer from Social Services.

We work with persons

· over the age of 60 years
· from South Asia (Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and from neighbouring countries) and East African Asians
· who are Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and who belong to other religions
· living in the City of Manchester

What do we do?

We

· visit older persons (in their own homes, nursing/residential homes and/or hospitals)
· discuss their social and health care needs - what they need to maintain or improve the quality of their life. For example, what support they need to climb steps/stairs, move about inside and/or outside the house, have a bath/shower, dress/undress, cook, clean the house. We look at housing issues, welfare benefits, social isolation, health, transport and other issues
· inform them about services that are available from Manchester Children, Families and Social Care (Manchester Social Services) and others
· provide them with practical help, for example, we make phone calls, write letters, talk to others and complete forms
· for those who are already receiving services, we review these and if appropriate we discuss with the Care Manager/ Social Worker or other professionals
· talk to our service users in their own language where possible. Our staff/ volunteers speak English, Urdu, Hindi, Punjabi and Bangla

Our approach

We take a community development and ‘slow’ social work approach. We attempt to maintain regular contact over a longer period with our service users. This enables us to

· form an effective working relationship with our service users
· help service users learn about their own needs, understand the services that are available and to make informed choices
· improve the relationship between service users, carers and professionals
· assist our service users to prepare for a community care assessment
· advocate effectively
· empower service users and promote the use of self advocacy

Working in partnership with providers and professionals

We work in partnership with health (GPs, District Nurses and others) and social care (Social Workers, Care Workers and others) professionals to ensure that service users’ needs are accurately assessed, services are provided that take into consideration cultural and religious differences and that any unmet needs are recorded.

We work in partnership with health and social care professionals to help improve their knowledge and understanding of cultural and religious differences.

We serve on strategy/policy and service improvement groups to help ensure that diverse needs are acknowledged, commitment made and appropriate services are developed and delivered by a skilled work force.

We encourage individuals and groups to develop an interest in health and social care issues and to participate in appropriate forums.

Charges and confidentiality
Our services are free and completely confidential. We only share personal information with others after discussing with service users.